Bridges and footbridges in Gubin - Footbridge from Theater Island to Guben

Tourist attractions

Image: Footbridge from Theater Island to Guben

Description

A footbridge leading from the Theatre Island to Guben - this is Gubin's newest bridge for pedestrians and cyclists, connecting the Theatre Island in Gubin on the Polish side with the Alte Poststraße and the promenade over the Neisse River in Guben on the German side. The bridge was constructed in a single-arch steel and wooden structure with a narrow platform and rigid arches on both sides. The commissioning day of the bridge symbolises Poland's accession to the Schengen Agreement on 21 December 2007 (as the bridge was opened on the eve of this event).

Historical background

For centuries, in Guben, as in other European cities, the bridges were made primarily of wood. Wooden bridge structures were popular mainly due to their low construction cost, high availability of material, speed, and ease of construction as well as low weight. Unfortunately, they also had their disadvantages, which were particularly noticeable in the urbanized area - wooden bridges were very susceptible to the effects of weather conditions, they were significantly and often completely damaged during floods and fires, thus leading to high maintenance costs. In addition, due to the low strength of the material, and thus a small span and load-bearing capacity (several meters for beam structures, about 40 meters for lattice structures), along with the increasing traffic intensity, they could not gradually fulfill their communication function.
Along with the popularization of the construction of massive structures made of reinforced concrete, city authorities began to gradually rebuild bridge structures. In Guben, almost all bridges on the Nysa, Lubsza, Egelneiße and Schwarzes Fließ were built and modernized in this way. A significant part of the existing bridges was destroyed at the very end of World War II by the retreating German troops. Many were not rebuilt - this group includes the Northern Bridge from 1925, which is the largest structure of this type in pre-war Guben.